cattle

cattle,

name for the ruminantruminant,any of a group of hooved mammals that chew their cud, i.e., that regurgitate and chew again food that has already been swallowed. Ruminants have an even number of toes on each foot and a stomach with either three or four chambers......Click the link for more information. mammals of the genus Bos, and particularly those of the domesticated species, Bos taurus and B. indica. The term oxen, broadly used, refers also to closely related animals, such as the buffalobuffalo,name commonly applied to the American bison but correctly restricted to certain related African and Asian mammals of the cattle family. The water buffalo, or Indian buffalo, Bubalus bubalis, is found in S Asia......Click the link for more information. and the bisonbison,large hoofed mammal, genus Bison, of the cattle family. Bison have short horns and humped, heavily mantled shoulders that slope downward to the hindquarters......Click the link for more information.. Narrowly used, ox refers to a mature castrated male used for draft purposes. In referring to domestic cattle a grown male is a bull, a grown female a cow, an infant a calf, and an animal between one and two years old a yearling. A female that has not given birth is a heifer; a castrated male is a steer.

Most cattle have unbranched horns consisting of a horny layer surrounding a bone extension of the skull; these horns, unlike those of deer, are not shed. Some cattle are naturally hornless. Western, or European, domestic cattle (Bos taurus) are thought to be descended mainly from the aurochs, a large European wild ox domesticated during the Stone Age, extinct since 1627. A smaller species, the Celtic shorthorn, was the most important domestic ox of the Stone Age and may also be involved in the ancestry of B. taurus. The zebuzebu, domestic animal of the cattle family, Bos indicus, found in parts of E Asia, India, and Africa. The zebu characteristically has a large fatty hump (sometimes two humps) over the withers. It is usually fawn, gray, black, or bay......Click the link for more information., or Indian ox, B. indica, is the humped domestic species of Asia and Africa. Several B. indica breeds have been developed in the United States into the Brahman breed. The yakyak,bovine mammal, Bos grunniens, of the Tibet region of China and adjacent areas. It is oxlike in build, with short, thick legs, humped shoulders, large upcurved horns, and a thick coat that hangs down to the ankles......Click the link for more information., B. grunniens, and other cattle species, wild and domestic, exist in Asia. Domestic cattle were first brought to the Western Hemisphere by Columbus on his second voyage.

In various societies throughout history wealth has been measured in terms of cattle—cattle is related to capital and chattel, and pecuniary is derived from pecus [Lat.,=cattle]. Breeding for improvement of beef and dairy qualities, practiced by the Romans, was established on scientific principles in the middle of the 18th cent. by English livestock breeder Robert Bakewell (see animal husbandryanimal husbandry,aspect of agriculture concerned with the care and breeding of domestic animals such as cattle, goats, sheep, hogs, and horses. Domestication of wild animal species was a crucial achievement in the prehistoric transition of human civilization from.....Click the link for more information.; breedingbreeding,in agriculture and animal husbandry, propagation of plants and animals by sexual reproduction; usually based on selection of parents with desirable traits to produce improved progeny......Click the link for more information.). Important beef breeds include AngusAngus cattle, breed of black polled (hornless) beef cattle, originated in Scotland and introduced in 1873 to the United States, where they have become well established......Click the link for more information., HerefordHereford cattle, breed of beef cattle originated in Herefordshire, England, and thought to be descended from the primitive cattle of the country. They are medium-to-large, deep-bodied, thick-fleshed animals with white faces and white markings......Click the link for more information., Simmental, Charolais, Limousin, Gelbvieh, Brahman, and ShorthornShorthorn cattle,breed of beef cattle developed from the native cattle of the Tees valley in NE England; formerly called Durham cattle. Systematic breeding of Shorthorns began in the latter part of the 18th cent......Click the link for more information.. Important crossbreeds include Brangus (Brahman x Angus) and Santa Gertrudis (Shorthorn x Brahman). Major dairy breeds include Holstein-FriesianHolstein-Friesian cattle, breed of dairy cattle originated in N Holland and Friesland. Commonly called Holsteins in the United States, these large cattle with sharply defined black and white spotted markings are believed to have been bred for their dairy qualities for 2,000.....Click the link for more information., JerseyJersey, island (2005 est. pop. 90,800), 45 sq mi (117 sq km), in the English Channel, largest of the Channel Islands, which are dependencies of the British crown. It is 15 mi (24 km) from the Normandy coast of France and SE of Guernsey. Saint Helier, the capital, is on St......Click the link for more information., GuernseyGuernsey, island, 25 sq mi (65 sq km), in the English Channel, second largest of the Channel Islands. Guernsey bailiwick (2005 est. pop. 65,000) includes Alderney, Sark, Herm, Brechou, Jethou, and smaller islands......Click the link for more information., Brown SwissBrown Swiss cattle,one of the oldest breeds of cattle, originating in Switzerland where the cows were used as triple-purpose animals (dairy, beef, and draft). They are large, fleshy, and slow-maturing, with body color ranging from gray or light brown to dark brown......Click the link for more information., AyrshireAyrshireor Ayr,former county, SW Scotland. Ayrshire became part of the Strathclyde region in 1975. In the local government reorganization of 1996, Strathclyde was dissolved and the council areas of South, East, and North Ayrshire were created in part from the former.....Click the link for more information., and Milking ShorthornShorthorn cattle,breed of beef cattle developed from the native cattle of the Tees valley in NE England; formerly called Durham cattle. Systematic breeding of Shorthorns began in the latter part of the 18th cent......Click the link for more information.. The importance of dual-purpose breeds has declined.

Cattle are classified in the phylum ChordataChordata, phylum of animals having a notochord, or dorsal stiffening rod, as the chief internal skeletal support at some stage of their development. Most chordates are vertebrates (animals with backbones), but the phylum also includes some small marine invertebrate animals......Click the link for more information., subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Artiodactyla, family Bovidae. See also beefbeef,flesh of cattle prepared for food. It has become one of the chief products of the meatpacking industry and is sold either chilled, frozen, or cured. The leading beef consumers, as well as exporters, are the U.S., the European Union, Brazil, Argentina, and Australia......Click the link for more information.; dairyingdairying,business of producing, processing, and distributing milk and milk products. Ninety percent of the world's milk is obtained from cows; the remainder comes from goats, buffaloes, sheep, reindeer, yaks, and other ruminants......Click the link for more information..

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Cattle

domesticated artiodactylous ruminants of the family Bovidae. They include buffalo, yaks, and all domesticated breeds belonging to the genus Bos. Domestic cattle (Bos taurus) descended from the urus (Bos primigenius), which was distributed throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa for several thousand years before the Common Era. The urus became extinct at the beginning of the 17th century. Domestication of the urus began approximately 8,000 years ago, first in India and then in Southwest Asia, the Mediterranean, and Middle Europe.

Domesticated cattle are divided into four subspecies according to craniological characteristics: the European cattle of the steppe and plain zones (Bos taurus primigenius), the European cattle of the mountain and forest zones (Bos taurus brachyceros), Central Asian cattle (Bos taurus turano-mongolicus), and the humped cattle of Asia and Africa, or the zebu (Bos taurus indicus).

The life-span of the cow is about 20 years (rarely up to 35 years) and of the bull 15 to 20 years. A dairy cow is used until the age of 12 or 13, when its teeth wear out and productivity decreases. It is advisable to slaughter beef cattle at the age of 1½ to two years after fattening or pasturing. Animals are bred to replenish the herd every five to ten years. Cattle continue to grow until the age of five years, although some late-maturing breeds continue growing up to the age of six or seven years. Heifers become sexually mature at seven to nine months; males, at six to eight months. Females are bred at 18 to 22 months, and males, at 14 to 18 months. The length of the period between calving to the first heat, or estrus, is approximately three weeks. The gestation period averages 285 days. As a rule, cows are uniparous; twins are rare (about 2 percent), and there are some cases of six or seven births at the same time. Twins are most often fraternal (of the same sex or different). The majority of heifers twinborn with bulls are sterile (freemartins).

Depending on the breed, the weight of calves at birth varies from 18 to 45 kg (sometimes up to 60 kg); bull-calves weigh 1–3 kg more than the females. Cows weigh from 200 to 600 kg (the largest, more than 1,000 kg); bulls weigh from 300 to 900 kg (the largest, 1,600 kg).

The productivity of cattle is determined by their hereditary features and by the conditions of feeding and management. The average milk yield of dairy cows of registered breeds is 3,500–4,000 kg; the butterfat content of the milk is 3.6–4 percent. On the best farms, milk yields are approximately 6,000 kg. The record milk yield per lactation is approximately 20,000 kg (a Dutch breed). Maximum daily milk yield is 82.2 kg (Yaroslavl breed). The highest lifetime yield is 120,247 kg (Kostroma breed during 13 lactations). Milk yields of beef cows are about 1,000 kg per lactation. The lactation period lasts 280 to 320 days; the dry period (the time from mating to calving) is 1½ to two months. Maximum milk yields in early-maturing breeds come during the fourth lactation; in late-maturing breeds, during the fifth or sixth lactation (sometimes the seventh). Cow's milk is a valuable nutritional product for man; it serves as a raw material for various food industries. Whole milk and the by-products of its processing are also used in feeding young livestock.

The meat productivity of cattle is higher in specialized beef breeds. Meat cattle fatten more rapidly than dairy breeds, yielding a larger dressed weight and better quality meat. When cattle are fattened, fat is deposited not only on the internal organs and carcass but also inside the muscle tissue in thin interlayers (marbled meat). The meat of fattened calves is especially valuable. By the age of 1½ to two years the calves attain a weight of 400 to 450 kg. Beef and veal are high in nutritional qualities and calories, are easily digested, and are used in dietotherapy.

In addition to meat, slaughtered cattle yield hides from which various types of leather are made. Other by-products are made into meat-and-bone, bone, and blood meal; endocrine preparations; stearin; glue; and soap. Bulls and oxen of some breeds are also used as draft animals.

Cattle are easy to take care of and adaptable to management. Because they have a voluminous compound stomach, they are capable of digesting a large quantity of vegetable roughage. The principal feeds are green pasture grass, hay, silage, root vegetables, concentrated fodder, and industrial by-products (oilcakes, grist, bagasse, and vinasse). Cattle are also fed protein, mineral, and vitamin supplements. Feed is rationed according to the animal's weight, productivity, and physiological condition. The amount of feed is also determined by its content of digestible proteins, mineral substances, and vitamins. During stabling the principal rations consist of roughage and moist fodders; during pasturing, green fodders. Cattle are tethered or untethered in a deep litter or in stalls. During the summer, pasture maintenance is utilized; however, if there are not enough pasture areas, indoor maintenance is used. In some regions cattle are driven out to extensive distant pastures.

Cattle are raised in all countries. The cattle population of the world at the end of 1970 was 1.141 billion. A large number of breeds that are adapted to various climatic zones have been developed.

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